Packaging arrangement



July 29, 1969 H. c. ALLISBAUGH 3,453,030

PACKAGING ARRANGEMENT Filed Dec. 13, 1967 I2 IO l2 INVENTOR. flow/W0 6. Au Isa/we fibrils s PACKAGING ARRANGEMENT Howard C. Allisbaugh, 6308 Breamore Road,

Indianapolis, Ind; 46220 Filed Dec. 13, 1967, SnNo. 690,314 Int. Cl. B65d 85/24, 85/54; A61b 19/02 vs. Cl. 206-46 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A packaging arrangement for needles, drill bits and the like wherein a cellophane helically wrapped straw has its opposite ends heat crushed intoclosed spring configurations with the needle or the like in the resulting container.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention.-This invention relates to a packaging arrangement.

Description of the prior art.-Many devices for packaging needles and the like have been devised and are known in the art. Some of them are shown, for example, in the US. patents to 'Wandelt 2,750,719, to Wagner 2,893,392, to Jones 2,966,986, and to Hitt 2,990,059. Another prior art device for packaging a drill bit involves a relatively rigid plastic tube having cushioning cotton or the like therein and having a screw cap. The packages of the above mentioned prior art can be improved as to their simplicity, cost, and ease of manufacture and use and also as to the effectiveness of the protection provided for the sharp point or cutting edges of the needle, drill bit, scarifier or the like to be housed or contained within the packaging arrangement.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION One embodiment of this invention might include a packaging arrangement comprising a generally cylindrical tube composed of plastic material, said tube having its opposite ends deformed into a closed condition to provide a closed container.

One object of this invention is to provide an improved packaging arrangement.

Another object of this invention is to provide a packaging arrangement particularly adapted for packaging a smallpox scarifier or the like.

A further object of this invention is to provide a packaging arrangement which when wrapped for shipment through the mail provides a cushioning effect to the packaging arrangement and the contents of the packaging arrangement.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a packaging arrangement which is relatively simple in construction and which is easy to manufacture and use.

Still a further object of this invention is to provide a packaging arrangement which provides effective protection to a sharp point or cutting edge of a needle, drill bit,

scarifier, or the like contained within the packaging arrangement.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The full nature of the invention will be understood from 3,458,030 Patented July 29, I969 DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now more specifically to the drawings, there is illustrated a length of cellophane tube or tubin 10 which is composed of a thin flexible strip of transparent cellulose plastic material helically wrapped to a uniform diameter. The tubing 10 has been frequently used in the past as straws for use in drinking soft drinks and the like. Such plastic tubing .10 is relatively rigid or stiff and yet does have a certain amount of resiliency or elasticity.

In order to form the packaging arrangement of the present invention, the object to be packaged is placed within the tube 10. This object may be a needle or scarifier 11 usable in smallpox vaccination or may be a drill bit or various other types of elongated objects which have a sharp point or a cutting edge which it is desired be protected against shock and abrasion. After the scarifier 11 has been placed within the tube 10 the ends 12 are crushed and heat adhered together into the undulating configuration 15 which has generally. the shape of a sine wave as shown in FIGURE 3. The temperature of the jaws necessary to produce permanent deformation and adhering of the contacting surfaces 16 and 17 is variable and should be determined by an experimentation, it being understood that the jaws should not be of so great a temperature as to cause burning or discoloration of the cellophane, but should be at a sufficiently great temperature to produce a permanent deformation of the cellophane and adhering of the surfaces 16 and 17. For the illustrated embodiment, it has been found that a temperature of 250 to 350 F. of the jaws is appropriate. Of course, the cellophane making up the tubing 10 should have a heat scalable coating thereon, such heat scalable coating being conventional and commercially available.

'It has been found that the packaging arrangement of the present invention provides a spring in the undulating configuration 15 which protects the pointed or sharp ends of the objects contained with the tube .10. The relatively stiff or rigid nature of the tube and the undulating configuration 15 contributes to the protection provided for the scarifier 11. It can be appreciated that the packaging arrangement of the present invention is relatively simple in construction and easy to manufacture and use because all that need be done to provide an effective closure and completion of the package is the clamping of each of the two opposite ends of the tube between a pair of heated jaws.

Referring to FIG. 3, it can be seen that the sharp point 20 of a needle tends to drive itself between the adhered together portions 21 and 22 of the closed end 24 of the package. Even so the needle does not completely pierce the closed end 25 of the package. Since the material making up the package is yieldable, the needle point is not blunted and is protected because the tube tends to retain the ballooned out configuration at 25 and the undulating configuration 15 provides a spring cushion against an axially directed force. It has also been found that when the packaging arrangement is wrapped for mailing effective cushioning is provided.

The invention claimed is:

1. A packaging arrangement comprising a generally cylindrical tube composed of plastic material, said tube having its opposite ends deformed into a closed condition to provide a closed container, wherein the opposite ends of said tube are crushed and adhered together in an undulating configuration having ridges and valleys in a section taken to include the axis of said tube, said undulating configuration acting as a spring to protect the contents of said packaging arrangement.

2. The packaging arrangement of claim 1 wherein said tube is composed of stiff yet resilient material.

3. The packaging arrangement of claim 1 wherein said tube -is-composed of a'thin flexible'strip of heatsealable transparent cellulose plastic material helically wrapped to a uniform diameter.

4. The packaging arrangement of claim 1 wherein the plastic is a thermoplastic.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,215,705 9/ 1940 Lenz.

2,581,664 1/1952 Jameson 206-52 3,092,251 6/1963 Jaggers 206-63.2

3,366,226 1/1968 Baklor 206-165 1,149,489 8/1915 Bache 22915 WILLIAM T. DIXSO N, 1a., Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

